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cr0y posted:I'm sure someone here will be able to answer this for me... If you do that, the credit card will usually insert some clause along with the rest of the account info like “Account under a partial payment agreement” or something to that effect. I honestly don’t know how bad this affects your score, probably way less bad than being late, but that is something that a lender would very much notice if they pulled your credit. Frankly it doesn’t look good, but is not an automatic disqualifier. It depends on the financial institution, what you are trying to do, and the rates you are willing to accept. However I think you are asking the wrong question. If you can’t even make the minimum payments, which as you know will take decades to pay the card off, you are in trouble. You should be asking what you can do to get out of trouble, not if I do such and such, how many FICO points get shaved off. If one of the payments is really bad I don’t have a problem if you want to set up one of those arrangements, it won’t destroy your credit, but view it as a temporary step to keep your head above water while you look for a more permanent solution. Also, listen to Dave Ramsey. I don’t agree with everything he says, especially his politics, but his advice is perfect for people in your situation.
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Jun 29, 2010 18:38
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I've had $20 withheld from my paycheck every week (as I ordered on my W-2 when getting hired) for a while now, on the (admittedly) ignorant assumption that if would add to my tax refund at the end of the year. Is this accurate?
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Jun 30, 2010 02:20
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Opinions on Amway? A girl I'm dating signed up for it about 6 months ago, before we met, and so far isn't really making any money off it. She dragged me to one of the seminars since they always try to recruit new people, but motivational speaker types don't really work on me (fortunately) so I got out of there as quick as I could. My 5 minutes of research tells me they're two steps away from being a pyramid scam, and have been sued for being so in the past but it never sticks. Supposedly 50% of people make no money off of it, and the overall average is only $100 a month. But of course, at these seminars they brought out all their 'platinum sellers' who all talked about how well it worked for them and they were all dressed very professionally. I get it: "Give us $240 dollars and sell our stuff and this could be you!" I don't really know the details of what she's doing, but when I ask her to explain it she gets defensive and can't answer simple questions. I tell her I think it's a waste of time and there are other things she could try to do to make extra money, but she seems entirely convinced by their propaganda. I concede that yes, it is technically possible to make money off of it, and with that she feels she's won the discussion. Unfortunately, that possibility I think only exists for people who absolutely dedicate their time to the system and are good salesmen (which I don't think she is). So is there any insight anyone can give me on Amway (beyond their totally biased literature package) and confirm/deny that it's a waste of time? (at least for her). And if it is, any suggestions on how to de-program her? slap me silly posted:There's a 26-page thread about that stuff: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3258090 Ah much thanks. I didn't even know the acronym "MLM" so I wouldn't have known to look for that. Elijya fucked around with this message at 04:48 on Jun 30, 2010 |
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Jun 30, 2010 03:57
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Elijya posted:Opinions on Amway? I think the major thing to remember on any MLM programs is that you aren't a salesperson, you're a recruiter. It really doesn't matter how much of their product you sell, if you can't recruit people to join your team then you're making no money.
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Jun 30, 2010 04:02
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There's a 26-page thread about that stuff: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3258090 In short, Amway is just the least seedy of the seedy MLMs. Don't waste your time.
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Jun 30, 2010 04:22
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In accordance with the law where I live, I get paid twice a month (mid-month and end of the month). In breaking with the law, however, my pay is split up 25/75, so my first paycheque is only half of what I've earned (though I do get the rest back at the end of the month). I'm an idiot: What's the logic here? Is this a tax thing?
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Jun 30, 2010 06:38
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In small businesses where cashflow is often a problem, paying money later is always better than paying money now. Well, economically, that's always true for any person/business, but a cash-strapped small business is probably the only place you'd see it.
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Jun 30, 2010 16:38
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Im 21 and im going to graduate university in a couple of weeks, I figure I should get a handle on this investment stuff sooner rather than later. I glanced through the information available and ill get down to reading it in great detail tomorrow but I have one question, is there a great difference in investing for retirement in the UK where I live as opposed to the US? As in terms for things and types of things you can do? If so is there a resource with information available?
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Jul 1, 2010 02:54
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DuckConference posted:In small businesses where cashflow is often a problem, paying money later is always better than paying money now. Well, economically, that's always true for any person/business, but a cash-strapped small business is probably the only place you'd see it. Thanks - as long as I'm not overtly being screwed over, it doesn't make much difference to me. It's odd, though. While we are a small business, we're definitely not cash-strapped, as the nature of our business sees us getting paid in full before having to expend production costs. Then again, not much else at my workplace is done logically.
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Jul 1, 2010 03:51
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I have a question regarding the appropriate amount of money to budget for rent. I recently got a job I really like--the right industry, the right place, at least for now. As it's my first job (I'm 23), I'm quite happy. The downside: net income is $2k/month. The other downside: New York City. If the benchmark is "spend a third on rent," then I'm probably out of luck. I'd prefer to live in a safe neighborhood, and also to keep the commute down to, say, within 30 minutes of downtown Manhattan. (By downtown I actually mean the Broadway/Lafayette station on Houston, for those familiar.) Some mitigating circumstances: No transit cost (work provides the MetroCard) No cell phone cost Health ins/dental provided No debts So expenses are basically rent/utils/Internet/food/"fun" money. Willing to be frugal on the "fun." Say $400/mo for food, $30 for Internet; no real sense of utilities, unfortunately. Another big mitigating circumstance: I do some fairly profitable freelance work. Let's assume this brings me an extra $500/mo net. (That's a very conservative estimate.) This summer I have a place to live, but I need an apartment starting in September. I have a few thousand in savings--enough for basic emergencies, but certainly not the six-month cushion folks around here seem to advise. How much would you budget mavens suggest I set aside for rent given $2500 in income and not many other expenses, and being considerate of NYC housing insanity?
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Jul 1, 2010 04:21
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You can probably manage fine with high rent unless you lose your job, but it'll be at the cost of your ability to save up cash over time. Therefore my suggestion is still 1/3 unless you can keep it short term. Maybe a generous 1/3 considering the circs. How about roommates? It's a common solution to this problem. If the thought of new roommates in a new city really skeeves you out, plan to rent on your own for the first year while paying a poo poo load, then move in with someone you have met the next year.
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Jul 1, 2010 04:29
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Actie posted:I have a question regarding the appropriate amount of money to budget for rent. I recently got a job I really like--the right industry, the right place, at least for now. As it's my first job (I'm 23), I'm quite happy. The downside: net income is $2k/month. The other downside: New York City.
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Jul 1, 2010 16:41
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If anyone is looking for a checking account, it seems ING Direct is having an Independence weekend special. Open a checking account and get $76. I haven't done this so I can't vouch for it or any strings attached, but thought I'd share. http://www.ingdirect.com/independence/
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Jul 1, 2010 18:15
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Aside from the fact that it isn't good for your credit. Is their any legitimacy to "debt forgiveness" in terms of credit cards? I tried google but I honestly can sift through what is and what is not actual useful information. I'm not blaming my credit card debt on anyone but myself but honestly I have little sympathy for credit card companies in a time when the american people are struggling and big business is reaping billions in profit. If i can screw them for my own benefit I won't lose any sleep over it.
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Jul 2, 2010 19:29
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Topsy Kretts posted:Aside from the fact that it isn't good for your credit. Is their any legitimacy to "debt forgiveness" in terms of credit cards? I tried google but I honestly can sift through what is and what is not actual useful information. I'm not blaming my credit card debt on anyone but myself but honestly I have little sympathy for credit card companies in a time when the american people are struggling and big business is reaping billions in profit. If i can screw them for my own benefit I won't lose any sleep over it. It’s legitimate when due to whatever reason, either a life changing event or perhaps your own stupidity, you are so buried up to your head in debt that there is no practical way that you can pay the entire thing off, and you can barely pay them at all after you take care of things like food, shelter, transportation, utilities, etc. If they decide to start charging you 30% interest and won’t work with you, then they can force you into that situation. Get out of your head that you are taking vengeance in some small way against the credit card companies that are screwing the American people. I hate Bank of America and Capital One too, but don’t worry, their CEO is not going to start eating tuna fish sandwiches in his corner office after they settle your debt. They can and will reprice their entire portfolio in order to earn their way out of their loan losses. That means everyone else will be paying more fees and higher rates because of you and the millions of people like you. Keep in mind that they usually won’t settle anything unless you are late/in default (which will ruin your credit) and you have the entire chunk of cash ready to go.
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Jul 2, 2010 20:38
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Does anyone have any good reading suggestions for the share market in Australia or even general finance books for Australian newbie investors?
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Jul 4, 2010 07:11
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I've got a general credit card/credit score question: I've had a single credit card with a $4000 limit for the past 10 years, just in my name, with a $2500 balance. My wife has a $80,000 credit limit on 5 or 6 various cards, most of which I have been added to within the past 2 years (when we got married). She's had these accounts open for 10-15 years on average, and has roughly a $20,000 balance (mostly wedding expenses). I'm considering closing my credit card account since the APR is high compared to the others we have. By doing so, I could reduce the APR from about 21% to 4% on the existing $2500 balance, which would help us pay it off a little quicker (a program that PNC Bank has). Now, when credit agencies consider "Oldest line of credit" when calculating my FICO score, will they look at my wife's accounts and say "This credit account has been open for 15 years and also has Endor's name is on it so this is Endor's oldest line of crdedit"? Or will this hurt me since this is pretty much the only credit account that has been entirely mine and that I've had my name on for more than a year? Main reason this matters is because we will probably need to take out a home-renovation mortgage on a house that's currently loan free that we recently inherited, and we'd like to try and maximize both our credit scores and cash flow.
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Jul 4, 2010 16:25
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Here is the best financial advice for you: pay off your wedding.
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Jul 4, 2010 16:35
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Already been doing that, thanks.
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Jul 4, 2010 17:17
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Endor posted:I've got a general credit card/credit score question: To answer your question, it depends if you are joint or just an authorized user. If you are joint, her oldest is your oldest. But I also don't like where you are going on this. First thing I don't like is you have a balance of $2500 at 21%, and while that is a horrible rate, you are blaming the rate on your inability to pay it off and not yourself on your inability to pay it off. Using your numbers, it costs $525 per year to have that balance on that card. That is $43 per month of finance charge. If you had a strategy to pay it off, you would be throwing hundreds of dollars a month at it. Most of your payments would go towards principal. The fact you have not paid it off yet means that you are either paying hardly anything to it, or you are paying quite a bit on it, but you keep using it. If you have a house that is paid off in full, it will be easy to get a mortgage on it, but if you were trying to maximize your cash flow, the obvious answer is to not have a mortgage. What is the rush to renovate everything at once? I think you guys have plenty of credit, and you have had most of them for a long time. I'm not going to say the only way is to close them and never use them again (although I wouldn't discourage it either) If you were to most of them it would have a minimal effect on both of your credit scores.
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Jul 4, 2010 18:52
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You owe $22500 at what rate, mostly 10%? That's quite expensive if so, and if you can't pay off the $2500 quick enough that the rate doesn't really matter you're not tackling the rest of it at a reasonable pace either. If you want to maximize your cash flow you should get rid of the debt instead of scratching your head about your credit score and taking on a mortgage payment. If you have 0% rates on that $20k for the rest of time, then never mind - but I doubt it.
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Jul 4, 2010 22:52
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Zeta Taskforce posted:But I also don't like where you are going on this. I don't like the 21% rate either, which is why I don't use the card very often. I'm not "blaming" my "inability" to pay on anything, I'm just stating facts which I thought might be useful. I'm glad you at least answered my question though, I'll make sure to check that I'm a joint user and not just an authorized user on each of my spouse's cards and then probably close my existing card using the lowered rate. I pay off my balance in full each month 95% of the time, but a series of unusual expenses within the past 2 months (big vet bill, blown hot water heater, busted garbage disposal, wisdom teeth extractions, etc) left me with a larger balance than usual, which would take me 3 months to pay off. Given the unexpected employment climate in Michigan right now, these are things that are better off put on a credit card instead of dipping into our emergency fund. Like I said though, my main concern was that closing the card might hurt my/our credit score since it's the only credit card I opened in my own name. And if I were going to close it anyway, I'd rather pay a 4% APR on the existing balance than 21%. Why pay the bank an extra $10-20 or more per month if I don't have to, and I don't need the credit line in the future? But I love how asking a question about the smartest way to reduce our current debt gets replies like "hey, just reduce your debt".
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Jul 5, 2010 18:37
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Endor posted:But I love how asking a question about the smartest way to reduce our current debt gets replies like "hey, just reduce your debt". Nice try, but actually you asked how to maximize your credit score so you could take on more debt. Edit: plus real advice since this is the newbie thread. It sounds like your credit score is fine and dropping a card or two won't change it much. On the other hand, it sounds like you don't have enough sense not to spend money you don't have and are pretty deep in debt as a result. That's why taking on a mortgage before you pay off the cards seems like a bad idea to me - it will slow down your payback on the credit cards and reduce your cash flow. The house probably seems like a windfall, but it's not if you have to spend a bunch of money to make it livable. slap me silly fucked around with this message at 19:09 on Jul 5, 2010 |
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Jul 5, 2010 18:42
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Does anyone in here know much about building your credit in the UK? I just moved to England with my British husband and am having trouble understanding the best way of building credit. My husband only has one credit card, his student card from 2003 which has a £500 limit (£0 balance). We went into Natwest the other day to open a joint savings account, and I mentioned that he should probably look into getting another card or increasing his credit limit in order to build his credit. I said perhaps I should look into getting a card or two as well so I could start to build my UK credit too. The guy at Natwest said I was totally off base. He said that UK credit doesn't take into account available credit, and that if I had 5 cards which each had £5,000 limit, if I applied for a mortgage or loan (which I have no intention of doing any time soon) it would show up that I am £25,000 in debt since technically I could go out and max them out at any given time. He said the best thing you could do for your credit is to have only 1 card with a very small limit. Is this right? It's contrary to everything I know about credit scores in the U.S. and Google hasn't been particularly helpful.
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Jul 9, 2010 08:40
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Zeta Taskforce posted:It’s legitimate when due to whatever reason, either a life changing event or perhaps your own stupidity, you are so buried up to your head in debt that there is no practical way that you can pay the entire thing off, and you can barely pay them at all after you take care of things like food, shelter, transportation, utilities, etc. If they decide to start charging you 30% interest and won’t work with you, then they can force you into that situation. I really feel like this is my only answer, unfortunately. I got in over my head young with credit cards and now have about $8,000 in CC debt and another $6,000 in secured debt at a credit union. I make about $1,000 cash/month (yay college) My share of rent - $150 CC - $250ish Other Loan - $150 Utilities - $60 TV/Internet - $50 Gas - $100 Food - $150 I really don't know what else I can do, after these expenses I am left with virtually no money for 4 weeks (I get paid once a month, wtf). I realize I am in a mess, I am really starting to rationalize the idea of some sort of debt forgiveness/negotiation. If anyone could give me some links to reputable people it would be very appreciated.
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Jul 12, 2010 16:04
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What are the rates on your cards, how are you paying for school, and when will you graduate? Here is the bankruptcy thread: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3169089
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Jul 12, 2010 16:16
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Rates on the cards are between 12-15% (gently caress me). I am scheduled to graduate Spring 2011, and college is currently being paid for via parents+loans. I'm not factoring in college debt at the moment because my parents are helping me out with it until I graduate. My main issues is that in my current situation I get paid, pay off all my stuff and essentially am broke again for the rest of the month. I am making no progress on my credit cards, paying as much as I can.
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Jul 12, 2010 16:20
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Topsy Kretts posted:Rates on the cards are between 12-15% (gently caress me). I am scheduled to graduate Spring 2011, and college is currently being paid for via parents+loans. I'm not factoring in college debt at the moment because my parents are helping me out with it until I graduate. If you are making $1000 per month, there is no way you would be able to make headway on anything. Your expenses are already cut to the bone, and even then some. What is the secured debt at the credit union? Unless your parents can step in and bail you out, you can’t pay them. Its not a moral issue, it’s a math issue. They lent 8 grand to a broke college student and it didn’t work out for them. I haven’t contributed to the bankruptcy thread, or even read it that much, but as overwhelming as the cards feel right now, it doesn’t seem like you have enough debt to make it worth it. Compared with bankruptcy, your credit will come back a lot faster if you just stop paying, let them go to collections, and then in a couple years when you are in a better spot you settle with them. Say that you eventually make 40 or 50K a year, coming up with $4K to settle this bad debt won’t be hard to do. Keep your student loans in good standing, your credit will be more than fine in a couple years.
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Jul 12, 2010 17:20
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Zeta Taskforce posted:If you are making $1000 per month, there is no way you would be able to make headway on anything. Your expenses are already cut to the bone, and even then some. What is the secured debt at the credit union? It's really bizarre to think that "just don't pay your credit cards" is a reasonable way to go about this. Is this basically what the point is? My financial situation seems completely insurmountable at the moment.
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Jul 12, 2010 18:35
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Topsy Kretts posted:It's really bizarre to think that "just don't pay your credit cards" is a reasonable way to go about this. Is this basically what the point is? My financial situation seems completely insurmountable at the moment. If you can manage to pay them and always keep all of them current, that’s better of course. Even if you just tread water until you graduate, that’s OK. If you have 1 big one and 4 small ones, and need to choose, keep up on the small ones since it will be one ding, not 4. But compared to paying for food, keeping your phone on, your rent, books, gas, car insurance, any medical costs that come up, your secured loan, I would say that your credit cards come last.
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Jul 12, 2010 19:06
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"Don't pay the credit cards," crazy, didn't even occur to me. If it's between bar hopping and paying the bills, pay the bills. Otherwise he's right. Dealing with the ding to your creditworthiness might be a hassle but it won't destroy your life. On the recurring topic of credit scores and "holy poo poo don't close your oldest card!" My score dropped perhaps 10 points when I closed my oldest card. Now, less than a year later, it is back up to ~800. I have two credit cards and a new mortgage (the mortgage has surely helped, of course). I have never made the slightest effort to tweak my score - I just maintained a credit card or two over the years and paid them off on time. Worrying about scores is over-rated unless you are near a threshold and about to take out a loan.
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Jul 12, 2010 19:53
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I just wanted to pop in and say that thanks to this forum I finally sat down, got my FICO scores, took a serious look at my finances and goals, and allocated some cash towards my loans. Quick example of how much this saved my rear end: I have a loan through Sallie Mae for tuition, current balance is $34,822, and I'm paying a tiny amount right now, 232 a month. I'd be paid off in almost 36 years, and pay almost $77,000 in interest to do so (Pretty sure I had that payment lowered a few months ago, but just as an example). Thanks, BFC 
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Jul 14, 2010 08:49
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Alright folks, here's some background. After 401k and taxes I take home about $3,200 a month right now. I'm paying $550/mo on my car (current payoff is $12k, interest rate 6.8%), $70/mo on my cellphone plan, and about $125/mo on entertainment expenses (internet, wow, gamefly, netflix, a game every month-and-a-bit). No credit card or student loan debt, or other loans/liens. I still live with my parents. I want to get into an apartment on my own. In fact, I have wanted for a long time, and have felt able financially for the past year. The problem is, my mother was laid off ten months ago, and her (strenuous and frustrating) efforts to get a new job have thus far yielded nothing. So in order to prevent her from bailing out her own 401k, I've been giving about $1,200/mo (give or take a couple hundred) to help her keep up with the bills. (Or you can think of it as me paying the rent--it's about $1,200--and her paying the rest with her unemployment+savings. Whichever.) The result is that I've felt I shouldn't try to move out until she gets re-employed, but I've been pretty ready to get the hell out of there for a long time (hell, I'm 25, I drat well should have been out of there YEARS ago  ), so I'm looking around for apartments again. I still need to be able to help her out though, if only to stop her breaking out the 401k (again).I listed out my current estimated monthly expenses (minus the actual apartment rent) below: pre:Cell $80
Internet $50
Groceries $200 I lumped prescriptions in here--actual doctor visits are free via insurance
Car $550
Electric/Gas $100 guess, +-$20 depending on apartment policy re: sewer, water, etc
Mom $1,000
WoW $15
Gamefly $20
Netflix $10
PC game $30 very approximate--figure one new game every month and a half or so
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$2,055 in expenses
1) What should probably be my target rental price for when I go apartment hunting, given the above? 2) Are there any other recurring expenses I forgot to enumerate? Ciaphas fucked around with this message at 22:08 on Jul 14, 2010 |
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Jul 14, 2010 21:59
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1) Only experience I had apartment shopping was I saw a couple places which said your gross monthly income must be at least 3.5x rent. Not sure how common this is/if you'll run into issues. I'm guessing your gross is like 50-55k/year so you're looking at about a $1100-1200 max. Obviously this takes up about the entire rest of your budget so I'd look cheaper than that. Because your mom's payment isn't debt your landlord don't know you plan on sending $1000 away, but in a pinch at least you'll have that money available. Bottom line you'll likely be able to spend more than you will want to. 2) As for your expenses... What is the story on the car loan, that is a huge payment. How long did you finance it for and is the car used or new? (I hope used with that interest rate). Do you ever go out to eat? Hang out with friends? Go to a bar/movie/etc? The only real entertainment expenses I see are Gamefly, WoW, game, and netflix... that looks pretty goonish... Also do you cook a lot or what are you doing to live on less than $200/month?
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Jul 15, 2010 01:26
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alreadybeen posted:1) Only experience I had apartment shopping was I saw a couple places which said your gross monthly income must be at least 3.5x rent. Not sure how common this is/if you'll run into issues. I'm guessing your gross is like 50-55k/year so you're looking at about a $1100-1200 max. Obviously this takes up about the entire rest of your budget so I'd look cheaper than that. Because your mom's payment isn't debt your landlord don't know you plan on sending $1000 away, but in a pinch at least you'll have that money available. Bottom line you'll likely be able to spend more than you will want to. The car was purchased two years ago with a heaping helping of negative equity--something like a $30k grand total for the car and my negative. I did stupid things in college, not the least of which was owning a Harley. That's come down to about $12k as of last Saturday, like I mentioned, thanks to a goodly number of overpayments. (If you're curious, it's a used Honda Civic '06 bought at 30k on the odometer for $18k sticker. Got a new engine at 39k, though--go go warranties on engine failures! )Your analysis of my entertainment budget as 'goonish' is harsh but mostly correct, unfortunately--I do hang out with friends but I'm a teetotaler so bars are right out, and most of our hangouts pretty much involve kicking the crap out of each other in rock band or street fighter or what have you. vOv Restaurants/eating out I didn't think of, but I don't eat out all that often. Not sure what dollar amount to write down for that. At home I tend to cook simple dishes, but during the week I get lunch and usually dinner free from work, so that's half the groceries right out. Beyond that though, the $200 is pure estimate Hope that answers things sufficiently. I know a few apartments around here that'd suit me just fine 'round the $800-850 range, which seems like it'd leave enough for incidentals--especially when my mom finally regains employment and I can thin out/eliminate that 'debt' 
Ciaphas fucked around with this message at 02:28 on Jul 15, 2010 |
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Jul 15, 2010 02:25
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I'm twenty years old, junior in college, no debt at all, parents basically pay for everything. My dad told me he'd give me $15k to play with, as he put it. Yesterday, I picked up "The Neatest Little Guide to Stock Market Investing" and "The Intelligent Investor" as recommended in the stock picking/trading megathread. Would that be the best course of action to "get my feet wet?" What else should I be looking to do with this money? I'm starting from almost no knowledge but would like to use this as an opportunity to get some experience in investing.
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Jul 15, 2010 02:25
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Good news is you make a decent enough amount, and aside from that rather poor vehicle decision live a fairly frugal life. If you have any savings, I'd spend all aside from a six month emergency fund to knock out as much of that 6.8% loan as I could. When it comes to finding an apartment what region do you live in and how big does it have to be? Can you make do with a studio or is a 1br a must? You don't sound too goonish, just having all of those expenses listed in that way conjured a different image. Since you don't really seem to know what you are spending on things go sign up on mint and start tracking/recording expenditures, it will help give you a clearer picture of your finances. Personally if I were you I'd find a cheap apartment that isn't in a dangerous part of town and is still reasonable commute to your office. Try and work on weening mom off your welfare (is dad around?). If you can manage a cheap apartment and stopping payments to your mother, you'll be in really good shape to eliminate debt, max out an IRA, increase 401k contributions, and build cash savings.
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Jul 15, 2010 03:11
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alreadybeen posted:Good news is you make a decent enough amount, and aside from that rather poor vehicle decision live a fairly frugal life. Thanks for the thoughts. No, dad's worse than useless (being a drunk ex-con ) so no support from that direction. I'm in Las Vegas, looking for a place preferably in the central-south part of town, in line with the airport. I thought about a studio, then toured one and realized I'd go up the loving wall if I had to live in one--1br1bath at least.I'll try mint out and observe for a month or two, thanks. Though you're not wrong about my goonishness--besides those things I listed I hardly spend anything on entertainment . You're probably right about food though, so I'll see what shakes loose.(incidentally, I've only got three months of emergency fund right now, so making a big ol' payment from that is out) Something I thought of on the way home tonight. Normally I think of withdrawing from one's 401k as a batshit-loco way of resolving debt issues--and it probably is--but I gave it some thought anyway because it's a boring-rear end 30 minute drive from work. Between my 401k and my Rollover IRA from my last job I've got about $24k in retirement savings; more than enough to eliminate that stupid car loan for good and put me loan-free, even given tax and penalties. Yeah, in the long term my retirement is set back, but, well, I'm 25--I have a ton of time to make up for it so long as I don't make a habit of withdrawals. And it would eliminate that $550 car payment, putting me WAY ahead in the short-medium term and enabling the move to an apartment I so crave. What do you all think, still a terrible idea or not too awful? Ciaphas fucked around with this message at 05:20 on Jul 15, 2010 |
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Jul 15, 2010 05:18
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Pulling money out of those accounts is quite expensive in the short term (taxes and penalties) and the long term (lost growth). If you leave it alone, you will avoid the 10% penalty and you may well earn better than the 6.8% of the car loan. You don't need to do it to accomplish your goals as far as I can tell, so why even consider it? If your mother is seriously hunting employment, it's reasonable to think she might find some kind of work within a year, and that's a pretty short-term restriction on your income. I hope she has cut her expenses to the bone and is willing to sweep floors, and I hope you're not feeding her beanie baby habit or something.
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Jul 15, 2010 05:41
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This may or may not be the right place to ask but, here I go. I've recently been reading about managed funds. While I don't want to start investing immediately, I'm wondering what other goons think about managed funds and if it would be a good medium term investing vehicle. Has anybody had any experience with similar funds? Or should I just forget about it, wait until I have 20,000 just lying around then invest it in something else altogether? If it makes any difference, I'm 20, I study full time and have a part time job that allows me to make regular (if somewhat small) contributions to savings and superannuation. My expenses are minimal due to being a stereotypical goon and living with my parents while I complete my degree.
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Jul 16, 2010 15:37
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